We 💚 Boston!

June 6, 2010 ~ Rocky and I stayed overnight in Boston. Our flight to Ireland took off the evening of June 7, so we had about 24 hours to enjoy one of our favorite places.

The flight from El Paso to Boston was uneventful (the best kind) except for our hostess. She reminded me of the Wicked Witch of the West. She was busy busy busy ignoring any needs of the passengers, and glaring at those who were lucky enough to catch her eye and make her do something.....like her job. She was really quite attractive but her sour attitude took care of all that! Her partner in crime was almost as bad, especially when she was hacking and coughing all over the passengers. Now, I know that sounds kind of mean, but come on!!

When we were at cruising altitude they broke out the drink cart, and when they passed by your seat and you happened to be reading or having a conversation with someone, you were out of luck until they came by to start picking up trash. If you were brave enough to ask for something at that time, you got it, but not until the airplane was spic and span!

When she made the second trash pass, I wasn't paying attention again, and I guess she actually had to stop and wait for me. To get my attention she shook her noisy plastic bag in my face....like a scary trick-or-treater. She was UN-pleasant.

And can you believe if you want something other than a soda (in a tiny cup with ALOT of ice) you have to pay for it! I couldn't believe it! What a rip off. Witchy woman walked up and down the isles with $4 sandwiches, $3 cookies and $3.50 cheeseboards - and I use that word loosely! While I was enjoying my cheeseboard, I couldn't believe passengers would actually pay for that sort of thing!! (I know, but gimme a break.....it was a 5 hour flight!)

Unexpected Bargain!

Not far from my house is a furniture store - Charlotte's.  I've been in there before, and unless you're dressed appropriately for a gala, dripping with diamonds, and with bullet-proof Texas hair, they won't even look at you, much less wait on you.  Knowing this, I decided to take a another chance, and I bounced in there with my capris, sandals and average looking blouse.  Also my hair was typical "me hair," but it was clean, and I had it stylishly pulled back behind one ear, so my pretty earrings would show.  That's all I had going for me!  Well that, and my very attractive purse, on which I get many compliments!

Two sales ladies were sitting at a desk, chatting, and after what seemed like 20 minutes, they both turned to look at me, and then looked away!  I thought, "Again???" So just as I whirled around on my very sore heel (big mistake!) to leave the store, one of the ladies actually got up and offered to help me, and she was nice!  Stunned, I just stood there for a minute, not knowing how to respond.  I thought maybe she meant she would help me out the door. 

I was looking for a cabinet that would hold my kitchen dishes.  The catch was it had to fit in a space 36" x 27" x 8 feet.  She showed me several pieces, all of which were very classy, and none of which would work.  Just as she was going to have me look through some catalogues, she remembered this beat up, but interesting antique piece.  I fell in love with it, and the measurements were perfect!  I thought it was very expensive, for what it is, but I'm a good talker.  After a few minutes I had them almost begging me to take it off their hands, and they would even deliver it for free!  (I exaggerate a bit here).  But I got the piece, along with some pretty deep discounts.  I thought when all was said and done, it was a fair price!  

As I was leaving the store, the nice sales person mentioned that the store had a free consulting service.  I jumped all over that!  She came by yesterday, and we chose a couple of great paint colors for the kitchen, so we'll see.   You who have seen my monochromatic kitchen will understand why I took her up on this service.  I was going to ask for her help with my study, but I didn't dare let her in there.  I would have had to ask her to sign a release from liability form!

At YOUR age.....?

In 2010 I worked as an occupational nurse.  I liked the job, but things out of my controlled slowly began making the environment more and more unpleasant.  I decided to quit, and used the excuse that I was going back to school to get a Master's degree.  So....I gave my 2 weeks notice, and my last day was August 19, 2010.  Little did I know, the next class at UTEP started on August 23, 4 days later!  Poor planning!  So I scrambled, made a quick appointment talk to the Dean about why I was the best candidate for one of the few spots still available in the program.  It was one of my better moments!

I soon found out there were more than a few spots still open.....like 40 spots.  That should have been my first clue that I had made the wrong decision.  I can't even begin to explain why I say that, because the answer is so vast, complex and sad for purposes of this blog.  But I will try.

That weekend before classes started, I bought new "school clothes,"  books and pencils!  I was so excited.  Monday morning, I discovered I could go to class in my pajamas, because the entire program, with a few exceptions, was online!  How can a Nurse Practitioner program be online?  I'm still trying to figure that out, even tho I've already graduated!

One of Rocky's nephew's said "All nurse practitioners ever do is write papers," and that's why he didn't want to join up.  I was very protective of my decision at that time, and thought he was a dope, but he was right on target!  That's all we did for 18 months.  I wrote papers on apoptosis, nurse-to-nurse bullying....all kinds of things that would not help me become a better NP.  That's what happens when the professors leave us up to our own resources!  We were supposed to read each others' papers (they were posted online) and make in-depth comments.  My apoptosis paper received only one comment....."Good job!"  I guess that's all they could think to say.

Poor Rocky - he's a saint!  When he would come home from work, almost every day I would be sitting at the kitchen table crying.  He was so kind and patient....for about a month.  Then he said, "OK, here's the deal.  There's no crying in medicine!"  I was so lost and in over my head, and now I couldn't even cry!  Well, I still cried, just all alone in my bedroom or in my car!  How pathetic is that? 

I was warned about the "30 pound weight gain."  But there I was, being able to sit down all day long and just read and write.  That was a dream come true for me!! But wow! I think I sailed past 30 pounds the first month!  It's just awful!  So, that's my new challenge.

I'm pretty computer saavy, but "Blackboard," the program we used for the online program came with it's own set of challenges.  We had to "post" on time, which means you had to turn in your papers on time.  When I missed a deadline due to a program malfunction, I would have to beg my professors to open the board again and let me post because........"  Their standard answer was "No!"  That's when I went to work trying to make them see the folly of their decision.  I was always successful.

After 3 semesters, we all started our clinical rotations.  We had to find our own preceptors!  My first rotation was pediatrics, and my preceptor was unpleasant and intolerant.  I guess she expected more from me since I was old enough to be her grandmother.  Heck, I was old enough to be the physicians' grandmother!  After 70 hours of pediatrics, I moved on to 70 hours of Women's Health, where my preceptor was a dream.  Her office partner, who was also wonderful and taught me so much, turned to me one day and asked "What were you thinking?" Another reference to my age!  By this time I was thinking the exact same thing!  What WAS I thinking?

Christmas vacation couldn't come fast enough, but to my dismay, we had to sign up for a crash course in complementary and alternative medicine.  It was 8 hours a day for 14 days, in an actual classroom, with an actual class leader.  Interesting experience......that's all I'm sayin'!

The next year we had to sign up for another class during Christmas vacation.  It was a full-term course, and we were required to do it in 2 weeks.  What a nightmare!  We worked at least 12 hours a day, and had to work in groups.  My group members lived in San Antonio, Ft. Worth and Dallas.  Group work is so  hard at best, but under those conditions, it's almost impossible. We had a major paper due every day.  I started crying again, even in front of Rocky.